MULLAPERIYAR STRIKE HITS
NORMAL LIFE IN IDUKKI
The dawn-to-dusk hartal called by the Mullaperiyar
Protection Council in the wake of the Supreme Court order in the Mullaperiyar
Dam case hit normal life in Idukki district but evoked little response in other
districts across the state.The hartal was called to express apprehensions of
the people over the apex court order on Wednesday which rejected most of the
contentions of Kerala including the demand for construction of a new dam in the
long-drawn dispute with Tamil Nadu.
Local agitators group had for long been demanding
construction of a new dam in place of the 119-year-old structure, holding that
it posed a grave threat to life and property of people in Idukki, where the dam
is located, and four other districts in the Central Travancore region.
Mullaperiyar: Strike hits normal life in Idukki The hartal
was called to express apprehensions of the people over the apex court order on
Wednesday which rejected most of the contentions of Kerala including the demand
for construction of a new dam in the long-drawn dispute with Tamil Nadu.Shops remained
closed in towns like Kumali and Chappath close to the dam area where the
protesters had gathered in large numbers since Wednesday.
Police said security had been stepped in border towns,
especially at the road entry points through which inter-state buses and trucks
pass through.While major political parties refrained from backing the hartal,
the ruling UDF had extended limited support to it within the Idukki district.The
Mahatma Gandhi, Calicut and Cochin universities have cancelled the examinations
scheduled for the day.
Prof. John Kurakar
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